LAX - BKK with CA $447 all in...

[Zeus 56]

Ran across this fare looking for a Sept flight to Thailand....

 

Air China $447 LAX -BKK. If you search Expedia it comes up as $477 but going directly to their website gets you the $447. The actual fare is only $120, the rest is taxes etc. I haven't seen fares this low since the SARS scare, and they were about the same then. In part this made my decision to return to the LOS much easier.

 

In any case I am in and ready to go in September. The countdown begins.....

 

I know... You get what you pay for and CA has mixed reviews(I read the thread by ballbag on China air - I think he meant Air China) . I will see what my money buys me. In any case, the savings will make up for a bit longer layovers - and I've done worse layovers(13hrs +). I'll try to do a follow up review after my experience.

 

Pros:

- Price - I like to think about how I can spend that extra cash.

- early morning departure 01:40 am, Perfect for me as I need to work the prior day and it lets me sleep on the plane.

- early evening arrival 6:35 pm. Time to get to Pattaya, it really beats arriving after midnight.

 

Cons:

- Long layover 8.5 hrs inbound and 5.5 hrs outbound. A bit too long for my taste, but no worries about any delays causing a missed connection.

- Transit through PEK - From what I hear not the best airport to spend a layover in.

- It is Air China. As I haven't flown them before I am going in with an open mind. Without any experience on this airline, you never know what you are going to get, and all airlines have issues. But I am preparing for the worst and hoping to not have any horror stories.

 

 

Zeus

Edited June 6, 2016 by Zeus

[BigusDicus 9,878]

Excellent airfare. But you are right, layovers are a killer!

[aj 62]

according to frequent flyer talk there are day room inside terminal 3.

but good fare. they now fly out of mci.

[BigDUSA 71]

Excellent fare out of LAX. There are cheap deals out of Philly and Washington, IAD for September. These tend to be snooze you lose deals.

[aj 62]

terminal 3,gate-10E. there is a day room/lounge

.e-mail is airporthotelt3@hotmail.com. the web site is www.bcia.com.cn.

intend to fly thru there in september as 847US on CA United is 1687US.

[whitney 10]

This is a great fare, even if their service is hit and miss. For this price, a short trip to Thailand can be worth it and not break the bank account Thanks for the information.

[js007 795]

A five hour layover is sort of tolerable, Eight hours, I don't know. One time I had a 16 hour layover in the new Bangkok airport and I just about went nuts. Anyway, I guess for the person on a budget, the $447 price is right.

[Zeus 56]

Yeah that eight hour layover is going to be a bitch. They had an inbound with only 4.5 hr delay, but it got in at midnight. This option has me leaving at midnight,but getting in at 6:30pm. I'll put up with an extra 4 hrs in a layover to get in at a better time (and sooner too!). That really salvages one night in Pattaya. A man has got to have priorities.....

 

BigD was right too.... My fare is now pricing at $100 more after only a few days, so it was an act fast kind of deal. There still are other days/itineraries at $471, which is only a small increase. I'm glad I pulled the trigger on this one when I did.

 

Zeus

Edited June 11, 2016 by Zeus

[TheFiend 1,181]

BigD was right too.... My fare is now pricing at $100 more after only a few days, so it was an act fast kind of deal. There still are other days/itineraries at $471, which is only a small increase. I'm glad I pulled the trigger on this one when I did.

 

Zeus

 

Picking up cheap fares is all about timing and knowing when to pull the trigger...... My October trip, MAN-BKK with Qatar is the cheapest I've ever paid and that was before the £60 cashback from my bank. Within a couple of days my itinerary had shot up £150.

[Zeus 56]

Just a followup to this post.

 

I flew my inbound legs of this flight and there were no real issues. Both flights were on time, leaving almost exactly when they should have. Now this really surprised me as most of my pre flight research showed that the departure times at Beijing showed that Air china averaged being 30-40 minutes late. I believe they record the actual takeoff time at Beijing rather than the departure time(gate push back). That being said the gate push back was 5 minutes early, There was a decent wait for the takeoff (20 min), which might explain the delays that show up on flight status.

 

Most of the complaints on Air China were not apparent to me on my flights. I was able to communicate fine the flight attendants, even though their English wasn't the best. The LAX-PEK flight had full IFE in the seat back(777 plane). Foot space was a bit restricted on the 777 window seat as there was an IFE box under the seat in front of me. But that could be true of any airline. The PEK-BKK flight (A320) had a bit more legroom than the 777. My biggest complaint was that drinks were served in a VERY small glass. By the time meals got served, any drink was gone. The food in economy was actually pretty good (for airline food). While I wouldn't rave about any of it, they were avg economy meals, nothing horrible, and I ate most items on the tray.

 

The biggest downside was going through the security at PEK. First there was a bit of confusion as to the lines to get in for international transfers (there were signs, but no one directing people). I got there OK but many got into immigration lines instead of going through to the transfer lines. Passing through security at PEK took about an hour and moved slowly. Instead of a dedicated transit security lane, arriving passengers that had connecting flights were directed back into the main security lanes that PEK outbound travelers used. And while it was 68F outside the security area was hot and humid. Everyone was sweating and people who had just been on 10 hr flights don't smell the best (I might have falllen into that category too). Luckily I had plenty of time, but I wouldn't want to be in that line if I had a tight connection.

 

Of course there was the expected 8hr layover, now down to 7 hr with the time in security. I did make a (free) reservation for the "transit" lounge online prior to leaving, but on arrival I could not find it. After asking at information they said it was opposite gate E10(I should have rememebered from the post above by AJ). So I went there and it was called the Business lounge(not the transit lounge). After going up an elevator and showing my reservation and boarding pass to the receptionist, I was in. There were only 3 others there Now this was not the best lounge, but it served my needs. Soft seating with 4 short couches, which were good for sleeping. There were free soft drinks, and small snacks(my fav was the packaged croissants) I moved a pillow from one of the chairs to a couch and slept there for a couple of hours then read a book I had brought. Before I knew it it was almost time for my flight to board so I went down to the gate.

 

The most important things were that the flights were on time and I got to where I was going without issue or delay. The primary goal of any traveler. I hope my return flights go as well.

 

Would I book Air China again? if given the same LAX-BKK RT rate for $447 when I wanted to go to the LOS again....I would do it in a second.

However, if offered at a similar fare to other airlines, there are better departure/layover times, and most international airports are preferable to PEK for transfer. So I would opt for the best route.

 

Zeus

Edited September 7, 2016 by Zeus

[BigusDicus 9,878]

 

 

Appreciate the followup Zeus.

[redwood13 56]

Yes, thanks for the Air China review.